Run, Run, Runaway
by kate10011
Summary: When Quinn's teenage daughter runs away instead of moving to New York to live with her estranged father, Quinn is left completely alone. Except some people close to her may know more than they are letting on about her daughters disappearance.
1. My Step Mother Is A Bitch

**Chapter 1: My Step Mother Is A Bitch.**

Sophia Fabray was certain of many things in life: her stepmother would always be a bitch, her father would always be a doormat (with all the intelligence of one) and her mother would always be the most amazing, beautiful, kind, intelligent, loving, nurturing person on the planet. That's why it amazed her so many that her mother was still single, sure her dad was an idiot for leaving when she was only a bunch of cells, but there had to be one guy smart enough to see how fantastic her Mum was, right?

Currently she was babysitting the football coach's daughter while he was at the game. She never liked football, especially not the football players at her school, so she had jumped at the chance to earn some extra cash and have a legitimate reason to avoid the Friday night games at the same time. Caroline seemed like an awesome kid, she was musically inclined in a way that Sophia's stepmother could only wish Sophia was, and she was smart and cute too. From what she had seen of the house so far, she didn't think that a woman lived here, in the three times that she had been here, Coach had never mentioned a wife or mother, nor were there telltale signs like photos on the walls or beauty products in the bathroom. Caroline was allowed to wait until her dad got home if they were playing a home game, like tonight, but the little girl was exhausted and crashed early, leaving Sophia time to update her blog, tonight's rant was about how entitled cheerleaders felt, before Coach came home.

"Caroline went to bed, she has exhausted" Sophia said, feeling a little comfortable, she had never been alone with the Coach before, and she wasn't quite sure what she was allowed to say.

"Poor kid had a big day, I'm pretty sure she near suffocated herself from talking so fast when she was telling me in the car" The coach laughed. "I brought some extra food home, would you like something to eat before you leave?"

"Sure" Sophia accepted graciously.

"I hope Caroline behaved for you while I was gone" The coach said, handing her a plate of takeaway.

"She was an angel like always, but can I ask you a question?" The coach nodded, "It's just most parents ask me a lot of questions before they leave me with there kids, I was just wondering why you didn't?"

"I did ask questions, just not to you" The coach said, "I talked to some of your teachers, Mr. Schue, some of the other staff, they told me everything I needed to know."

"So they told you about my situation?" Sophia asked ashamed.

"Bits and pieces" He noticed that Sophia looked ashamed, "Look I was raised by a single parent too, Caroline is being raised by a single parent, I know better than to listen to the garbage that goes around that school. But if you need someone to talk to, my door is always open, after a game or if you can hold your breath long enough to get past the stench in the locker-rooms."

"It's just my parents are going through a custody battle again, the lawyers told my Mum that she probably won't win this time" She said, "Mum doesn't know that I know."

"Is your dad local?" He asked, curious.

"No, he lives in New York with his wife" She explained, "But you're a football coach, you'd know more about Finn Hudson than me."

"Finn Hudson is your dad?" He asked, "But I thought your last name was Fabray"

"Finn's wife insisted that I changed my last name to Fabray when I was 12, apparently my mother was jeopardizing the brand that they were creating" Sophia said, "She's just as shameless now as she was back in her home-wrecker days just before I was born."

"You're pretty angry with her?" It wasn't really a question, it was self-evident really.

"When my Mum found out she was pregnant with me, she went and told dad straight away, at the same time he told her that he was leaving her for Rachel. Then Rachel wouldn't let him help Mum at all while she was pregnant, even when she was kicked out of home and he had a spare room. Instead my Mum had to live in a crappy hotel room, alone, and work 8 hours after school and weekends to support herself, and then when she went into labor, he didn't even come until after because Rachel decided it wasn't appropriate. I don't even remember him being around when I was a baby, but according to Mum he always visited, according to my Uncle Sammy that means that he sent his child support check once a month. I know he didn't visit me any of the three years that he was in college, and he didn't send Mum any money then either, because apparently his career came first. Then when he actually made the pros, Rachel convinced him to get a DNA test to prove that I was actually his daughter and a suppression order against us to stop Mum from saying anything to the press, she couldn't even put his name on my school records. When he and Rachel got married, she insisted that my mum bring me all the way to New York for two weeks, enough I missed my grandma's birthday and Uncle Sammy's wedding, and then I had to be the flower girl, but I wasn't allowed in any of the official pictures, because apparently _again,_ it wasn't appropriate. And now there suing for custody, trying to get me to move all the way to New York, even though I haven't seen him for two years and he hasn't even called on my birthday, or Christmas, or anything, or even come to visit me once. But apparently because he has a better income, and a house, and he's married, and higher paid lawyers, he'll win, and I'll have to move."

"Your step-mum sounds like a complete bitch" Puck agreed, "I wouldn't want to live with her either."

"Yeah, well thanks to the genius of the New York State, I might have to" Sophia said, "Do you mind if I ask where Caroline's Mum is?"

"She left a couple of years ago, kids weren't exactly in her life plan."

* * *

On the Monday after Puck had listened to Sophia vent about her situation, he heard in the teachers lounge that her mother had officially lost the custody battle and Sophia was being sent to New York immediately. He didn't know why it bothered him so much, but then again if Aliannah came back and tried to take Caroline away from him, he didn't know what he'd do.

When he brought Caroline home that night, he noticed some of the lights were on in his house. Initially he thought his mother might have come by during the day, probably to check there was edible food in the fridge.

"Hello" He called out, keeping Caroline behind him. "Anyone here?"

"You said if I ever needed anything" Sophia said, emerging from the bathroom, drying her freshly-dyed hair with a towel.

"What's going on?" He asked, allowing Caroline to run off into her playroom, "Shouldn't you be saying goodbye to your Mum?"

"I should be on a plane to New York right now, but I can't go with them, do you know I won't even be living with them? They want to send me to a boarding school!" Sophia exclaimed, "I'm going to run away, and come back when I'm 18 and he can't touch me."

"Sophia you can't do that, think about what your Mum, what happens to her when she finds out your missing?" Puck says, "She'll be the first person the police will suspect, she'll be put through hell."

"That's why I need your help, I need you to give her this letter" She handed him an envelop.

"Sophia, I can't let you do this, I can't just let you run away" He said, despite the fact that he probably would have done the same thing.

"You have to, even if you call the police, I'll run before they get here, and even if I get caught, I'll keep trying until I get away." Sophia said, a blaze of determination all over her face.

Puck took a second to think, he knew that there was no stopping her, but he knew a way for him to watch over her. "Wait here a second, don't worry, I'm not going to call the cops."

Sophia waited anxiously before the coach came back holding a few pieces of paper, and a bank card.

"Aliannah never took these when she left, wherever you go, when you get there, your going to start calling yourself Ali Puckerman. This is her social, her bank details and her debit card, the pin is 2002, there's a few hundred dollars left in the account, it will be enough to get you set up, don't use any of this until you get wherever it is your going okay?"

"I will never be able to thank you enough for this" Sophia said.

"Just stay safe, and if you ever need anything, call, anytime, day or night" He said.

An hour later, Sophia was gone.


	2. The Worst Of Circumstances

**Chapter 2: The Worst Of Circumstances.**

Quinn sat in her living room, surrounded by lawyers, police and God only knows who else. She was distraught that her daughter had apparently decided to run away, Finn on the other hand was just faking it. The police were tripping over themselves to assure Finn that they would find _his_ daughter, however they hadn't as much as glanced her way since they arrived. She assumed she was already suspect number one.

"Quinn, I came as soon as I heard" Santana exclaimed rushing into the room, hauling Quinn into an embrace, "Why the hell are you letting that home-wrecking tramp sit on your nice couch?"

"How dare you!" Rachel exclaimed, "I have done nothing of the sort, all I am doing is assuring that my step daughter is raised in the best possible environment, and now I'm worried sick became her mother probably convinced her to do something like this, God knows where she is, what kind of mother allows her child to be put in such grave danger. It's really no wonder that the courts awarded custody to Finn and I, you really are an unfit mother."

"What kind of woman comes into some else's home and throws around ridiculous statements about a child's mother after she purposefully denied that child from having a father in their lives?" Marley fired back.

"That is absolutely untrue, Finn is a fabulous father, and he's completely devoted to his daughter, it's Quinn who tried to ruin their relationship." Rachel screeched back.

"That's enough!" Sam Evans, the local chief of police, yelled, "Rachel and Finn, you can leave, book a hotel, go back to New York, I don't care, just go. In the mean time, we've closed down every road out of town, we're searching cars, trucks, buses and trains, Sophia's still in the area, we'll find her."

"Thank-you Sam" Quinn muttered, "I know you'll bring her back to me."

"She'll be okay Quinn" Sam said, giving his friend a hug, "She probably just needs some time to herself, we'll find her before anything happens."

"Sam, on behalf of Finn and myself, I just want to thank…" Rachel began in a snobby voice.

"Save it Rachel, you're with friends now" Sam said coolly, "We all know your nothing but a home wrecking whore."

"Chief, we found something up here" One of Sam's guys called to him, coming down the stairs, evidence bag in hand, "One of those tin moneyboxes you can't open, empty, there was a can opener hidden near it."

"Do you know how much she had saved up in there Quinn?" Sam asked, signing the evidence bag and giving it a cursory glance.

"I'm not sure, she was saving up for a new laptop, and a prom dress" Quinn said, tears prickling her eyes again, "She told me a few days ago that she was getting close."

"Why didn't you just buy her the laptop!" Finn yelled.

"Because she wanted to save for it herself" Quinn replied in a small voice, "She was so proud of herself for earning the money and not having it handed to her, she told me it made it feel like a grown-up."

"So she could have a grand on her, maybe more?" Sam clarified.

"Yeah, I think so" Quinn replied.

"How was she earning the money?" Sam asked.

"Babysitting, she had a few regular gigs with different people, a few of my friends from work, a few teachers from her school." Quinn replied.

"We'll need to talk to her last few clients" Sam said, "And whoever she might have spoken to about the custody issues, or confided in about running away."

"Her last babysitting client was Puck, on Friday night" Quinn said, "She always babysits for him while he's at the game, but she wouldn't have confided in him, they barely knew each other"

"Does she know?" Sam asked, discreetly referring to the new relationship between Quinn and Puck, which had been festering since Sophia was born (Puck had been the one holding Quinn's hand through the entire ordeal), until recently when Puck moved back to Lima permanently, when they both agreed to take a leap of faith and try.

"No" Quinn replied, "I didn't know how to tell her."

"And nothing out of the ordinary happened?" Sam clarified, "She didn't come home upset, or act strangely."

"No, she went and babysat, I know Puck fed her before I came to pick her up" Quinn said, "But nothing was wrong."

* * *

Twenty minutes or so of silence later, Puck finally arrived at the house. Quinn rushed straight into his arms the second he arrived, breaking down in tears and sobbing into his chest.

"Shhh" He whispered to her, "Everything will be okay."

"She's missing, Noah" Quinn sobbed, "My baby is missing."

"We'll find her" Puck replied, throwing a dirty look at Finn and Rachel, "Everything will be okay, I promise."

"The press would like a statement" A female officer interpreted.

"I'll do it" Rachel said immediately.

"No, you'll sit down and shut up" Sam commanded, "We need to convince Sophia to come back home, and if she sees either of you then she'll just run further, not that anyone would blame her."

"Sam, Quinn's in no state to do this" Marley said, "Maybe Santana or I could do it instead."

"No, I'll do it" Quinn whispered.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Santana had managed to clear the smudged makeup and running mascara off Quinn's face, and fix her hair into something a little more dignified. She stood in front of the assembled press, hands trembling as she spoke softly.

"Sophia, if your watching this, I want you to know that I love you, and that no one is mad at you. We can work this out baby girl, but I need you to come home. Please come home Sophia, your aunts and uncles and I are all so worried for you. Sophia if your watching this, I love you, and nothing will ever change that."

With that she turned around and walked back into the house, she headed straight to her bedroom, leading Puck up the stairs behind her. Closing the door she collapsed into his arms again and sobbed her heart out for her missing baby.


End file.
